Handler found injured after police dogs die in car

Officer taken to hospital with hand injuries as Met launches investigation after dogs die on hot day An investigation has been launched into the deaths of two police dogs who were left in a car on one of the hottest days of the year. The Metropolitan police animals, a working Belgian malinois and a German shepherd puppy, were found collapsed in an unventilated vehicle at the force’s training centre in Keston, Kent, on Sunday. A Met police officer, believed to be their handler, was found by colleagues following the incident in the Newham area of London suffering from hand injuries. It is not known if his wounds were self-inflicted. He was last night still receiving medical treatment, police said. The Directorate of Professional Standards has launched a probe into the circumstances of the incident, which took place as temperatures soared to as high as 29C in the south-east. A Scotland Yard spokesman said: “On Sunday June 26 at approx 11am staff at a Metropolitan police service (MPS) building were alerted to two police dogs having been left in an unventilated private vehicle. “Entry was forced to the vehicle and two MPS dogs, a working Belgian malinois and a German shepherd pup, were found in a state of collapse. “Both were taken to an emergency vets where they subsequently died. “An investigation by the Directorate of Professional Standards into the circumstances of this incident has begun.” Police refused to name the officer linked to the incident, but confirmed a policeman was found with injuries following the discovery of the dead canines. The Scotland Yard spokesman added: “The officer was located in Newham Borough suffering a hand injury. He was taken to an East London Hospital as a precaution and is currently receiving medical treatment.” The deaths follow those of two German shepherd police dogs, who were left to die in a baking hot car outside Nottinghamshire police headquarters in July 2009. A spokeswoman from the Dogs Trust, the UK’s largest dog welfare charity, said it was “saddened” to hear of the two latest deaths. She added: “Whilst the cause of death is still to be determined, the charity would like to remind dog owners and police dog handlers that leaving your dog in a car can prove rapidly fatal, particularly during a heatwave. “It can take just 20 minutes for a dog to die and temperatures can reach over 40C in some vehicles.” Police dog handler PC Mark Johnson was handed a six-month conditional discharge after he was found guilty of animal cruelty in relation to the deaths of the two dogs in Nottinghamshire. During his trial in February last year, Nottingham magistrates’ court was told he suffered from depression and obsessive compulsive disorder, which led to him forgetting that he had left the dogs in his car outside Nottinghamshire police’s Sherwood Lodge headquarters near Arnold as temperatures reached 29.3C. Metropolitan police Police Animals London guardian.co.uk

Posted by on June 28, 2011. Filed under News, Politics, World News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.